Oxford and Around

Hiya People in the real world, what's it like out there? Well, tbh, as we settle into a routine in Oxford, it does at times feel like I'm back in the real world. I got a sobering note from an editor from GP Putnam. She'd requested my middle grade historical fiction back in April which of course, thrilled me to shreds. Then last week in her letter to me, which was not an actual rejection, she said "You have a great premise. I wanted to love the book ....." Ouch! I had to down several pints at The Turf (famous Oxford Pub) to recover!!! Anyhoo ... she went on to say what she didn't like and said she'd be happy to take another look if I wanted to revise. Yippee doo dah. And so I now have to be disciplined and revise, revise, revise - change from 3rd person POV to first, work on voice, blah, blah, blah.
And Daryl is hard at work on various research papers - going to the office everyday.
We got ourselves bicycles this weekend. Driving is strongly discouraged in central Oxford and forbidden in the city center. We have to take buses or ride bikes to get around. It's fun actually.
I find it hard to capture Oxford as a visitor since we'd spent three months here on a previous Sabbatical. Walking around the center I see all the familiar and beautiful landmarks - The Carfax Tower, The Sheldonian, the Bridge of Sighs, the Covered Market, the colleges, etc. I love walking through the college grounds. It's amazing to find such lush expanses of green, wooded grounds in the heart of a bustling city. I love the gothic architecture and the old pubs with low beamed ceilings and uneven floors and the cobbled lanes and the scholarly atmosphere.
We spent the weekend driving and walking through the Cotswolds. Sleepy villages lie in rolling green countryside and just a few miles away are bustling villages, like Bourton on the Water and Stow on the Wold. Old stone buildings with slate roofs are characteristic of the area. Everything about the area is oh so quaintly English, from the pub lunches to the cream teas to the shops and what they carry. The weather on Saturday especially was fabulous - warm and sunny. We hiked around villages, into the countryside, across farmfields, meadows, woods, and along clear gurgling streams. Oh so beautiful.
Fall is tapping lightly at the door and I have a feeling we are seeing the end of summer.